Hands on: A few days with the new MacBook Pro

Yuval Kossovsky   Today’s Top Stories   or  Other Macintosh OS Stories  

Advances in SSL and Certificate Management Virtualization: Simplify. Automate. Lower Costs. Mobile Device Management: Wresting Order from Chaos 7 Requirements of Data Loss Prevention Ponemon Study: How much does a data breach "cost"? E-LOAN maintains reputation as a privacy leader with Symantec Data Loss Prevention solutions Virtual Reality SaaS Solutions for Remote Systems Management Mobility @ the Speed of Business Sign up to receive Macintosh OS Resource Alerts

March 9, 2006 (Computerworld) -- In my first look at Apple Computer Inc.'s new MacBook Pro (see "A hands-on look at the new MacBook Pro"), I promised a more comprehensive look at the laptop once it began shipping. I spent last weekend using this 2.16-GHz Intel Core Duo machine, and while I am still not fond of its name, I have grown to love the hardware.

This particular model is the 15-in. version now trickling into users' hands, and came courtesy of Apple for review purposes. It was stuffed with 2GB of RAM and an ultra speedy 256MB of video RAM. More is better.

As the owner of 12-in. and 15-in. PowerBook G4s (circa 2004), I haven't been able to take advantage of some of the features introduced in the PowerBook line last year -- until now. The most impressive of these are the sudden-motion sensor, which locks the hard drive to prevent damage in case you drop your laptop, and my current favorite: the two-finger track pad for scrolling. This feature is (pardon the pun) really handy. Using two fingers to scroll a window up and down is easier than moving the cursor to the right, hitting scroll arrows and moving back to my page. Sure, it sounds lazy, but do that several hundred times in a day and you appreciate the innovation.

For those of us used to a two-button mouse, having to put two hands on the keyboard to bring up contextual menus is a real drag. I found this awesome utility called One Finger Snap from Old Jewel Software that invokes the "right-click" if you hold down the trackpad clicker (or one-button mouse) for a definable period of time. One Finger Snap, combined with the two-finger scroll, leaves my other hand free for drinking coffee at all times!

Speaking of innovation, it looks like Apple's engineers really got it right with wireless reception this time around; The all-metal hinge attaching the screen to the frame has a rubber inset that increases antenna sensitivity exponentially -- yes, exponentially! Unfettered by the reflective metal surface that had limited Wi-Fi reception in earlier models, the MacBook Pro found WLAN access points everywhere I traveled last weekend, access points I had never seen before from the same location. Also, Wi-Fi signals that had dropped out before are now constant -- with full or almost full strength signal.

Other immediately noticeable improvements are the feel of the keys and the imaging on the speakers. Yes, the stereo imaging sounds better to me, and at one point in my life, I was a mixing engineer.

And then there is the screen. The 15-in. screen on this MacBook Pro is bright and sharp, and offers pretty much the same resolution as the last generation 17-in. PowerBooks. It is significantly brighter than my PowerBook and appears to be the same as the brightness level on the 23-in. Apple Cinema Display that I use with my Power Mac G5. More importantly, it appears that this increased brightness does not come at a cost of battery life. I noticed a slight improvement in battery operating time in comparison to my 15-in. PowerBook G4.

Continued...
1 | 2 | 3 | NEXT  

Print this Story

Send Us Feedback

E-mail this Story

Digg this Story

Slashdot this Story

"Apple, on Tuesday will release a full plate of new portable Macs.  In the months leading up to the event,..." Read more... Read more Macintosh & Apple posts or See all Blogs

Feds considering changes to H-1B application process in wake of report Exploit code loose for six-month-old Windows bug With market meltdown, which tech firms become predator or prey? More top stories...

The Grill: Privacy is a thing of the past, says private investigator Report: World Bank servers breached repeatedly Apple asks judge to make iPhone lawsuit moot

Health hazards for IT workers -- how that desk job wears your body down Too much junk food, too little exercise and a 24/7 tether to technology? Your body ain't happy, friend. Let us count the pains. NASA robot sends back evidence it's snowing on Mars Instruments on the surface of Mars have detected falling snow that is likely evaporating before it reaches the planet. Wall Street's collapse may be computer science's gain One positive development stemming from the collapse of Wall Street may be a boost in interest in computer science and IT careers among students who were previously interested in financial services jobs. Installing Linux apps: A few good tips Getting new software installed on Linux doesn't have to be hard, but it can differ depending on what you're installing. Windows Vista A to Z Reviews, analyses, how-tos, visual tours, hot issues and predictions about Microsoft's new OS. More Continuing Coverage After 9/11: Homeland Security Apple's iPhone Ask a Premier 100 IT Leader Bill Gates steps down BlackBerry Legal Battle Data Security Breaches Electronic Voting Firefox H-1B Visas HP's Boardroom Scandal Handheld Devices Hurricane Katrina Aftermath Microsoft Legal Issues Microsoft's Vista Open Source RFID Technology SCO's Linux Fight Sarbanes-Oxley Act Spam Voice Over IP Wi-Fi Windows Meta File Vulnerability Windows XP Service Pack 3 IT Careers 2010 Four years from now, the IT field will be a vastly different place. Will you be ready? More Special Reports Premier 100 IT Leaders 2007 Best in Class 2006 Computerworld Horizon Awards 2006 Premier 100 IT Leaders 2006 Salary Survey 2007 Best Places to Work in IT 2007 IT Forecast 2007 Premier 100 IT Leaders 40 Years of Computerworld ASPs, Take Two Best Places to Work in IT 2003 Best Places to Work in IT 2004 Best Places to Work in IT 2005 Best Places to Work in IT 2006 Business Intelligence Home Runs Business Intelligence: Smarter BI Business Intelligence: The Future of BI CRM Goes Vertical CRM: Sober CRM Career Planning Guide 2005 Careers: IT Profession 2010 Computerworld Horizon Awards 2005 Data Management: Mining for Gems Data Management: Taming Data Chaos Development: Hard-Workin' Web Sites Development: New Tools New Choices Development: The New World of Application Development Development: The Web Services Tsunami Development: Web Services Hurdles Disaster Recovery: Preparing for the Worst E-commerce Grows Up E-mail/Groupware: Big Decisions Faces of Mobile IT Forecast 2006 Global Mobile Hardware: Multiple Cores, Multiple Challenges Hardware: On-Demand Un-Hyped Hardware: The Shape of Things to Come Horizon Awards: 10 Cool Cutting Edge Technologies IT Management: Guide to Managing Vendors IT Management: Navigating Global IT IT Management: Recovery Ahead IT Management: The Future of IT IT Management: The Resourceful Project Manager Innovative Technology Awards 2004 Management: Reinventing IT Microsoft in Transition Mobile/Wireless Leaders and Laggards Mobile/Wireless: The Untethered Worker Mobile/Wireless: Tiny Gadgets, Huge Costs Network Management: Taking Control Networking: Turbulence Ahead! Networking: VoIP Goes Mainstream Operating Systems: In the Slow Lane Operating Systems: Linux Goes Global Operating Systems: Should You Nix Unix? Outsourcing: Offshore Buyer's Guide Outsourcing: Outsourcing Dangers Premier 100 IT Leaders 2004 Best in Class Premier 100 IT Leaders 2005 Best in Class ROI: Do the Math! Salary Survey 2003 Salary Survey 2004 Salary Survey 2005 Security Action Plan Security: Compliance Headaches Security: Proactive Security Security: Risk and Reward Security: Tips From Security Pros Souped-up Security Storage: Battling Complexity Storage: Cheap & Secure Data Stores Storage: Stretching Your Storage Dollars Storage: The Lean Storage Machine Storage: The New Rules of Storage Storage: The Ultimate Backup Guide Supply Chain: Missing Links Supply Chain: RFID Reality Check The Business of Security Web 2.0 Security Wireless: Wireless At Work All Zones Application Performance Zone Business Continuity Zone The File Data Management Zone Security Management Zone The SAS Zone Business Intelligence and Analytics Zone Windows Protection Zone The Enterprise Search Zone Software as a Service Zone The Security Zone See your link here

Long Tail Supplier Collaboration - What's In It For You? Long Tail Supplier Collaboration - What's In It For You? Download this webcast, free, compliments of Sterling Commerce Go to the webcast  White Papers Read up on the latest ideas and technologies from companies that sell hardware, software and services. Business Transaction Management: Facilitating the Management of Virtual Environments Quick Sizing Guide for SAS Grid Running on HP BladeSystems and EVA Storage Prudential Financial protects its brand with Symantec Data Loss Prevention solutions View more whitepapers  Linux Rising Get this Computerworld report free (a $195 value) for a limited time, compliments of Novell. Linux is now firmly entrenched in the enterprise. Computerworld's new Executive Bulletin on the open-source operating system will get IT managers up to speed on the latest Linux developments, ranging from its impact on database sales to competition with other operating systems. Download this executive briefing  Virtualization Everywhere Download this white paper, free, compliments of Citrix. (Source: Citrix) Adoption of virtualization is concentrated among large enterprises, while adoption by mid-sized companies has been much slower. For these companies, the cost and complexity of server virtualization solutions has been a barrier. In this paper, we'll discuss how Citrix XenServer" provides simple, economical server virtualization for any size company. Download now! Download this white paper

• Feds considering changes to H-1B application process in wake of report
• The Grill: Privacy is a thing of the past, says private investigator
• Exploit code loose for six-month-old Windows bug
• More top stories 

Best Places to Work in IT Where can you earn top dollar, get the best benefits, the latest IT and more? Find out in our 14th annual survey.

Preston Gralla: Apple plays the bully again Apple is once again unleashing its attack dog lawyers. This time against a college for using an apple in its logo. ... [more]